Other States and U.S. Territories in EPA Region 5

Marian University $216,000
Kristie Johnson, 3200 Cold Spring Road, Indianapolis, IN 46222
Marian.eduGreen and Sustainable Science Summer Program
Marian College conducts two identical, intensive seven-week summer programs targeting a socioeconomically diverse group of both undergraduate students and high school teachers, including groups historically underrepresented in the sciences. The program contains a curricular component, a research or project component within the field of environmental sustainability, and a community outreach symposium where participants give poster and oral presentations about their projects. Each summer, 10 undergraduate students and 10 high school teachers receive five college credits. The program can be tailored to the resources of other colleges and universities. Materials from the symposium will be shared and the lead faculty member plans to be a mentor for other colleges or universities that start their own program.

2010 Grants

Lake County Solid Waste Management District $32,131
Jeanette Romano, 7820 Broadway, Merrillville, IN 46410Environmental Stewardship Begins at Home
The Environmental Stewardship Begins at Home project reduces human exposure to toxic chemicals in communities of East Chicago, Hammond, and Whiting through educational programs and household hazardous waste collections. The area's industrial past has led to environmental degradation throughout these communities. Partnerships formed with middle schools in these three communities allow the program to reach students and their families through presentations, classroom-based workshops, electronic and printed publications, a household hazardous waste collection event, and a household hazardous waste environmental fair. The project increases student and parent environmental knowledge of reducing the risk of air, land, or water pollution though educational programming and removal of potentially harmful wastes from area homes.

2009 Grants

Indiana Wildlife Federation $22,500
Benjamin Reinhart, 4715 West 106th Street, Zionsville, IN 46077Environmental Habitat Steward Certificate Program
Indiana Wildlife Federation, along with other environmental professionals, is developing a curriculum-based certificate program to provide focused environmental and ecological training addressing the preservation and enhancement of natural habitats. The Environmental Habitat Steward Certificate Program teaches participants fundamental concepts in habitat management and provides information on current practices that can be used during development projects to preserve or enhance environmental habitats. By focusing on the concepts of habitat management, participants are able to apply environmental principles to their traditional professional methods in creative and innovative ways based on the needs of particular development projects. The program looks to publicly recognize and encourage environmental stewardship in the realm of human development. Thus, the program addresses education reform in two ways. First, by adapting existing environmental and ecological curriculum resources, development professionals find it easier to understand habitat management concepts and how they apply to the built environment, aiding in increasing the environmental knowledge and awareness of the target audience. Second, by establishing a high-quality certificate program, Indiana Wildlife Federation and its partners work to encourage a new environmental standard among development professionals and ensure, through a final examination, that all participants who successfully complete the program meet the standard.

2008 Grants

Ball State University $36,630
Mary Annette Rose, 2000 W. University Avenue, Muncie, IN 47306EnviroTech
The mission of the EnviroTech Project is to initiate, enable, and facilitate a critical examination of a contemporary issue that ultimately enhances environmental literacy and technological literacy of technology teachers and their students. A series of Webinars are the primary interactive medium for teachers, the instructor, and guest participants. Between the Webinars, peer-to-peer collaborations and mentoring of teachers are enabled through a discussion board. All resources and tools are accessible from a dedicated Web site. The project provides instruction on (1) understanding environmental processes and systems, (2) skills for identifying, analyzing, and assessing the impacts of technology on the environment, and (3) pedagogical skills in use of guided inquiry. Two questions guide the experience for teachers and students: (1) how might replacing incandescent lamps with compact fluorescent lamps (CFL) affect the environment and society, and (2) what strategies might individuals and communities use to reduce the negative impacts of replacing incandescent lamps with CFLs?

2006 Grants

Improving Kids' Environment Inc. $15,729
Janet McCabe, 1201 North Central Avenue, #9, Indianapolis, IN 46202Smart Schools Don't Idle
“Smart Schools Don’t Idle” educates students, teachers, staff, administrators and parents at Indianapolis elementary schools about the environmental and health effects of unnecessary vehicle idling. The goal of the project is to provide a prototype that educates the entire Marion County elementary school community on the health effects of motor vehicle idling and to dispel myths about motor vehicle idling. As a result, students, parents, school administrators, and teachers have the necessary tools to make informed decisions about how their personal behavior affects air quality. Workshops are presented to teachers and school staff so they can learn about the project. By adapting existing materials, as needed, the project provides teachers with classroom activities and information that will help children understand how pollution is emitted by idling vehicles and how the emissions affect their health and the environment.

2005 Grants

Springs Valley Community Schools $8,840
Roger Fisher, 498 South Larry Bird Boulevard, French Lick, IN 47432Is Our Drinking Water Safe?
Springs Valley Junior and Senior High School students conduct water quality studies of Lost River both upstream and downstream of French Lick and West Baden to find out the effect of human activities on Lost River. The studies measure dissolved oxygen, nitrate levels, and turbidity, and then compare the results with Patoka Lake, another local source of drinking water. Students present the results of the studies to the town boards of French Lick and West Baden.

The Jack and Shirley Center for the Arts $9,990
Edwin Shelton, 101 West 2nd Street, Michigan City, IN 46360Great Lakes Summer Eco-Art Camp
The Great Lakes Summer Eco-Art Camp is a collaborative venture between the Lubeznik Center and LaPorte County Youth Serving Agencies Coalition. The art project is integrated into the coalition’s ongoing summer camp program, which reaches children and youth in the Lake Michigan and Great Lakes communities. The participants study a major issue related to lakeshore ecology and develop eco-artwork and reflection statements as they investigate the manner in which personal and community decisions affect the lakeshore.

2004 Grants

Allen County Soil & Water Conservation District $4,570
Allison Van Zandt, 3718 New Vision Drive, Fort Wayne, IN 46845Project WET: Water Education for Teachers
This project funds Project WET training in Allen County, Indiana. Project WET is an international water science and education program for educators and students in kindergarten through grade 12. Project WET workshops train educators how to improve their teaching of water resource topics in their classrooms and make hands-on educational activities available.

Camp Fire USA Indiana Heartland Council $5,000
Jerome Delbridge, 1410 South Post Road, Indianapolis, IN 46239WorldWise Summer Youth Program
Through this program, 800 young people from low-income families are introduced to ecological concepts. The program consists of five units that focus on ecological topics ranging from energy cycles to ecosystems. In addition to learning about ecology, the young people address community issues by designing and implementing service projects that improve the natural environment. Key program partners include the Indiana Department of Environmental Management, the Indiana Department of Natural Resources, Keep Indianapolis Beautiful, and the Boys & Girls Club.

Health and Hospital Corporation of Marion County $14,000
Robin Costley, 3838 North Rural Street, Indianapolis, IN 46205Asthma Education for Low-Income Head Start Families
This project expands current Head Start asthma screening and education efforts by focusing on high-risk pediatric populations. After an initial asthma screening is conducted, an asthma educator visits each Head Start family to devise a plan of care. Home visits also are conducted by indoor air specialists and public health nurses. The screenings and home visits result in fewer emergency room visits, increased participation in asthma education classes, and better preparation of families to recognize and address in-home asthma triggers.

Indiana Dunes Environmental Learning Center $5,000
John Hayes, 700 Howe Road, Porter, IN 46304DuneSCOPES High School Program Expansion
DuneSCOPES (Students Concentrating on Positive Environmental Science) has three goals: (1) engage high school students in monitoring ecological change, (2) link students together using special events and the Internet so that they can learn about each other and their communities, and (3) share information regarding environmental careers with students who are making choices about their future. The participation of high school students in the Chicago and northwest Indiana areas increases environmental stewardship activities and implementation of long-range projects that benefit the communities in the region.

2003 Grants

Drifting Dunes Girl Scout Council $5,000
Marlene Cosby, 8699 Broadway, Merrillville, IN 46410This Land is Your Land Initiative
The purpose of this project is to implement "This Land Is Your Land," an environmental education and environmental justice training initiative addressing community issues in northwest Indiana. The project involves providing instruction about the history of industrial pollution in the area, Lake Michigan's role in the area's development, lake water quality issues, wetland protection, solid waste management, and what citizens can do to ensure sustainable development.

Indiana Department of Environmental Management $4,990
Paula Smith, 100 North Senate Avenue, Indianapolis, IN 46206-6015Environmental Education Lending Kits and Trunks
Since July 2002, more than 35,000 preschool and elementary school students around Indiana have been exposed to environmental education lending kits. Currently, 91 kits are being circulated by Indiana University and Purdue University's Teacher Resource Center. The Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) is adding materials to the kits on topics such as pesticides and indoor air quality. IDEM staff members are also promoting the kits at education conferences around the state.

Purdue University $18,391
Timothy Gibb, 610 Purdue Mall, West Lafayette, IN 47907Educational Network for Integrated Pest Management for Indiana Child Care Facilities
The purpose of this project is to raise awareness of pest control concepts among childcare providers across Indiana. A multimedia approach is being used to deliver educational messages and materials through workshops, presentations, brochures, web sites, and a technical support hotline. Purdue University is sharing the project model with other states in EPA Region 5. Other project partners are developing plans to integrate pest control concepts into existing childcare provider training. In addition, the partners are encouraging the childcare industry to adopt integrated pest management principles and are raising awareness of pest control issues among the general public.

St. Joseph County Health Department $5,000
Marc Nelson, 227 West Jefferson Boulevard, South Bend, IN 46601Educating Water Well Installers about Managing their Water Systems
This project is educating approximately 1,000 St. Joseph County residents who are installing new or replacement water wells about the importance of water system management. The residents are informed about their legal obligations, groundwater issues, water pollution, water quality testing, and water system planning.

2002 Grants

Calumet College of St. Joseph $5,000
Mary Riley, 2400 New York Avenue, Whiting, IN 46394Urban Environmental Issues in Northwest Indiana
A new course entitled "Urban Environmental Issues in Northwest Indiana" enhances the existing urban studies program. The goal is to encourage nontraditional, minority students to pursue careers in urban environmental management. The course encourages students to make informed decisions and take responsible action on environmental issues by developing critical-thinking and problem-solving skills.

Rensselaer Central Middle School $4,995
Lana Zimmer, 1106 Bomber Boulevard, Rensselaer, IN 47978Everyday Science
"Everyday Science" is a multi-disciplinary program aimed at kindergarten through 12th-grade teachers. The program seeks to broaden the education of elementary school children to include environmental studies. Through an in-service training, teachers identify goals and objectives that will lead to student-implemented stewardship projects.

2001 Grants

Huntington County Community Schools - Riverview Middle School $4,580
Juli Werth, 2465 Waterworks Road, Huntington, IN 46750Soils Learning Center
Approximately 200 sixth-grade students at Riverview Middle School begin the 2001-2002 school year by learning about soils so that they can help create a soils learning center laboratory. The laboratory is designed to accomplish the following goals: (1) teach students to see the soils as a living system, (2) educate students about processes that form soil, and (3) demonstrate the role of soil in the hydrologic cycle.

Johnson County Solid Waste District $4,960
Meggan Walker, 755 East Hamilton Avenue, Franklin, IN 46131District Mascot
Johnson County uses a robotic dog as a district mascot and teaching tool for an environmental education program focused on solid waste management, with a particular emphasis on waste reduction. Teachers and students in Johnson County are the primary audience of the program, and approximately 75 presentations are given throughout the county. In addition, the dog visits the annual conference of the Hoosier Association of Science Teachers and a meeting of the Indiana Environmental Education Association and takes part in an interactive workshop to be presented at a conference of the Indiana Recycling Coalition.

Marian College $23,049
Ron Weiss, 3200 Cold Spring Road, Indianapolis, IN 46222What is an Environmental Scientist?
On the campus of Marian College, approximately 125 eighth graders and 60 ninth graders address crucial questions about the ecological importance of wetlands and examine the ways in which career environmentalists operate. The students participate in a workshop on wetlands, during which they engage in hands-on experiences in the methods and procedures environmental scientists use in evaluating wetlands. Faculty of Marian College and that institution’s students of environmental science facilitate the workshop.

2000 Grants

Indiana Dunes Environmental Learning Center $10,793
Matthew Miller, P. O. Box 871, Chesterton, IN 46304Energy Matters: A Middle School EE Program
Along with the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore and NISource, Inc., the Indiana Dunes Environmental Learning Center offers a program called Energy Matters: Energy Efficiency and Renewable and Alternative Technologies. The program serves 90 students in grades 6 through 8 and their teachers at three local middle schools. The public-private partnership combines educational expertise and residential facility resources with technological and informational resources to teach students how energy matters to them personally. After teacher preparation and student field trips, students conduct an energy audit of their schools and prepare recommendations for implementing energy-efficient technologies.

1998 Grants

City of Gary $5,000
Dorreen Carey, Office of the Mayor, Gary, IN 46402-1236Community-Based Environmental Education
The city of Gary, in partnership with the Lake County Solid Waste Management District, provides a community-based environmental education program. The organizations work with the students and teachers of West Side High School to provide training and resources for the implementation of a sustainable solid waste and recycling program. Environmental professionals train 10 teachers and 20 students to use interactive environmental education tools. Students then coordinate a minimum of 20 educational sessions for citizens and leaders of communities and students of all ages, reaching a target audience of 500 people.

Grand Calumet Task Force $5,000
Bowden Quinn, 2400 New York Avenue, Whiting, IN 46394Gary Kids for the Environment
The Grand Calumet Task Force supports an environmental club for students in the Gary, Indiana school district. Students participate in after-school activities through which they learn about the environmental issues that affect their community. Club activities enhance environmental education lessons learned in the classroom. Students also have the opportunity to visit outdoor sites where they participate in hands-on, interactive learning experiences. Science teachers from the Gary school district serve as technical advisors to the club and encourage students to develop skills in scientific investigation. The Grand Calumet Task Force targets communities affected by issues of environmental justice in which students typically are underserved.

1997 Grants

Vigo County School Corporation $3,990
C. Jean Church, 961 Lafayette Avenue, Terre Haute, IN 47804Substitute Teacher Environmental Project
Through a program at Utah State University, Vigo County trains an in-service facilitator in water education. The facilitator then trains 20 substitute teachers in the Vigo County school system to be water education specialists so that they can teach environmental lesson plans when they substitute throughout the school district. The training workshop focuses on learning to use the Comprehensive Water Education Book, a text designed to accomplish the objectives set forth by the National Science Council. In the classroom, students study issues related to water quality, wise use of water, and non-point-source pollution. They explore those issues through learning activities based on sound, hands-on techniques of inquiry. The project reaches more than 8,000 students during the school year.

1996 Grants

Clarksville Riverfront Foundation $5,000
Dani Cummins, Director of Development, P. O. Box 741, Jeffersonville, IN 47131-0741Interdisciplinary Environmental Summer Institute
The Clarksville Riverfront Foundation is conducting a five-week Interdisciplinary Environmental Summer Institute at the Falls of Ohio Interpretive Center State Park and National Wildlife Conservation area. The program involves 15 teachers and 150 students from school districts in Indiana and Kentucky. Teachers participate in two-day workshops and then lead a week-long experience for students using curriculum materials Clarksville developed under a previous EPA grant.

Heritage Hills Middle School $4,500
Michael Schriefer, North Spencer County School Corporation, P. O. Box 416, Lincoln City, IN 47552Thematic Instruction Environmental Workshops
In the Thematic Instruction Environmental Workshops project, Heritage Hills Middle School is training its teachers about the delivery of thematic instruction related to environmental issues, and engaging students in research and hands-on activities. Parents and community members will join students in the design of an outdoor teaching laboratory to be developed on the forest area of the school campus.

1995 Grants

Geography Educator's Network of Indiana $5,000
Rick Bein, Dept. of Geography, Indiana University-Purdue Univ. at Indianapolis, 425 University Blvd., Indianapolis, IN 46202-5140Stimulating EE in Indiana: A Geographical Assessment of Critical Environmental Issues
Funds from this grant will partially support a three-week commuter institute for Indiana teachers of kindergarten through 12th grade entitled, "Stimulating Environmental Education in Indiana: A Geographical Assessment of Critical Environmental Issues in the Evansville Region." The institute will offer presentations and field trips on topics such as the symbiotic nature of life, climatic changes, land-based degradation and conservation, and photo-chemical pollution.

Grand Cal Task Force $5,000
Dorreen Carey, 2400 New York Ave, Ste. 303, Whiting, IN 46394Northwest Indiana Ecosystem: The Community Connection, Executive Director
The Grand Cal Task Force will give seminars to churches, neighborhood and community groups, and civic organizations on how to promote pollution prevention, sustainable community development, and environmental improvement in northwest Indiana. Seminars will reach 1,500 community members using a slide show and educational presentation developed under a 1993 EPA grant.

Sierra Club $24,300
Patricia Werner, 960 E. Washington St., Suite 200B, Indianapolis, IN 46202Teacher/Facilitator Training for Wetlands Curriculum
The purpose of this project is to educate 240 teachers of kindergarten through 8th grade throughout the state and 60 teacher-trainers on wetlands using the Sierra Club's Integrated Environmental Curriculum Wetlands Component. The project will be carried out with U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Indianapolis Zoo, and Indiana Department of Education. Other outcomes include establishing a wetlands network throughout the state.

1994 Grants

Clarksville Riverfront Foundation $5,000
Kenny Karem, 430 Marriott Dr., Clarksville, IN 47130Ecosystem Education Program
The purpose of this project is to develop a hands-on ecosystem education program for the nearby Falls Interpretive Center. The center will serve more than 800,000 people in southern Indiana and northern Kentucky. The project will enable the Falls Interpretive Center, which will be established in 1994, to offer teacher education workshops and student programs that focus on the diverse habitat found on its 1,400-acre wilderness area.

Indiana Recycling Coalition $16,000
Jane St. John, 1040 W. 17th St., Bloomington, IN 47404Environmental Education Master Teacher Network
This project will establish the "Environmental Education Master Teacher Network" and sponsor environmental education workshops for master teachers in sixteen counties of southern Indiana. Master teachers will then educate other teachers so that the program could potentially reach 24,000 students In kindergarten through 12th grade. The workshops will revolve around an interdisciplinary environmental curriculum developed by the Heritage Education Foundation of Indianapolis called, "Partners with the Earth."

1993 Grants

Geography Educator's Network of Indiana $5,000
Frederick Bein, IUPUI Department of Geology, 425 University Blvd., Indianapolis, IN 46202-5140Stimulating Environmental Education in Indiana: A Geographical Assessment of Critical Environmental Issues
The purpose of this project is to sponsor a three-week environmental institute entitled "Stimulating Environmental Education in Indiana: A Geographical Assessment of Critical Environmental Issues." An outcome of the institute will be more than 50 classroom-ready lesson plans with a geographical focus for the teachers to use in the upcoming year.

Grand Cal Task Force $5,000
Dorreen Carey, 2400 New York Avenue, Whiting, IN 46394Grand Cal Task Force
The purpose of this project is to broaden an educational program aimed at educating students in at least 30 middle schools and high schools in Gary, East Chicago and Hammond, Indiana. Grand Cal Task Force will travel to schools with a slide presentation and teach the predominately minority student population about local environmental problems in that Great Lakes Area of Concern.

Indiana University $5,000
David Borneman, School of Health, Physical Education and Recreation, P. O. Box 1847, Bloomington, IN 47402Bradford Woods Outdoor Center Waste Education
A comprehensive, integrated waste education project will be developed at its Bradford Woods Outdoor Center through this grant. The program will teach 6,000 elementary students, 600 physically disabled persons, and 15,000 people in the community about responsible waste management.

1992 Grants

Indiana Department of Environmental Management $6,807
Indianapolis, IN 46205Enviro-mobile
This grant funds the development of an Enviro-mobile. The Enviro-mobile is a self-contained interactive mobile learning center that will accompany environmental education in the Northwest Indiana area.